As in many developing countries, local languages are under threat in the Philippines because of the neoliberal globalization-induced hegemony of English in schools and in government agencies. At least in the Philippine context, language provisions in the Constitution offer some prospects for the development and implementation of state-led language preservation initiatives. Such initiatives can only be more effective if met with similar and parallel grassroots-driven advocacies. Indeed, ideally, state-led initiatives and grassroots advocacies should complement each other. This paper argues that higher education institutions (HEIs) are in a prime position to integrate and strengthen the linkages between such state-led and bottom-up initiatives for local language preservation. In view of this, this paper is aimed at offering preliminary insights on how HEIs can contribute in activities that help in language preservation efforts such as documentation, codification, institutionalization, and communalization.

Authors:
David Michael San Juan, De La Salle University, Philippines

About the Presenter(s)
Dr. David Michael San Juan is a Full Professor and vice chair at the Department of Filipino/Philippine Studies in De La Salle University (DLSU) and an affiliate at the Southeast Asia Research Center and Hub (SEARCH) in the same university.

Connect on ResearchGate
https://www.researchgate.net/profile/David-Michael-San-Juan

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